Nashville, which missed the playoffs last season, is 7-7-1 in season openers.

The Blues came out aggressively, scoring three times on their first six shots.

"The first 10 minutes were ideal," Backes said. "This was a result we can love. It's just a first step, but we had a lot of guys contribute on the score sheet and off the score sheet.

"It all adds up to a pretty good team victory."

St. Louis coach Ken Hitchcock was also pleased.

"I thought that the players that have been here a while really put their best foot forward," he said. "This gives us a chance to build on some things."

Backes scored from close range at 2:05, just three seconds after Matt Cullen was sent off for tripping. Backes pounced on a shot from the blue line by Pietrangelo. The goal came 51 minutes after the final out of the baseball game.

Sobotka tallied on a break along the left wing to make it 2-0. He went by Kevin Klein and sent a backhand behind Rinne.

Oshie converted on a pass from Steen to push the lead to 3-0. Rinne was pulled after that tally.

"Obviously, I'm not happy with the result, not happy with the effort," Rinne said.

Steen scored a power-play goal at 11:16 of the second period to stretch the lead to 4-2.

Halak then made nine third-period saves to preserve the lead.

Nashville defenseman Seth Jones, the No. 4 overall pick in the draft, played 18:35 and had three shots on goal in his debut.

"I had a couple good shifts to start the game and that carried me throughout out the game," Jones said.

Jones, who was celebrating his 19th birthday, is the son of former NBA journeyman Popeye Jones. Popeye Jones, an assistant coach with the Indiana Pacers, was in attendance.

"It was a thrill, I'm just excited to be here for this," Popeye Jones said.

Game notes

St. Louis has made the playoffs in 37 of its 46 seasons. ... Nashville coach Barry Trotz is the longest-tenured head coach with the same team with 1,115 games. ... St. Louis LW Brenden Morrow fixed his work-visa problems earlier in the day and was able to play. ... Hitchcock improved to 10-3-4 in season openers.... Halak, who played in just 16 games last season due to groin injuries, last won on March 23, 2012, a 3-0 win over Edmonton.

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ST. LOUIS, MO - OCTOBER 3: St. Louis Blues Hall of Famer Brett Hull drops a ceremonial puck for David Backes #42...